Machinefabriek & friends: Bridges (Sub Rosa)

I have no idea what to write about this, as it is an audio-visual piece - as much about the design (created before the music) and the ethos of the concept (Machinefabriek creates 4 field recordings on four bridges, sends each recording to a different pair of improvisers - who then send their individual pieces back). The music is mixed together and, here is the result.

Simple really.

What does it sound like?

Hmmm, like a bridge really - well, four different bridges actually for all you pedantic bridge watchers out there.

It does look amazing though - the pictures discs are made up of film images to produce a zoetrope like film if you stare at 'em whilst they are going round.

Hildur Gudnadottir: Without Sinking (Touch) / Hildur Gudnadottir & Hauschka: Pan tone (Sonic Pieces)

                                                                                                                                                                           

Hildur Gudnadottir plays the cello to produce a soundtrack for the rising of the Sun or dying of the  Earth. I'm aware of exactly how wanky that sounds but the rising and falling of the notes throughout these albums signify (to me) beginnings and endings. And it is not always easy to work out which are the beginnings and which are the endings - such is the dichotomy of the imagination when coerced into sensory moods by music of creative power like this. Listening to this in alternate states and situations and in the extremes of day/night create new thought patterns - although you always find yourself becoming entirely encapsulated by it. I frequently feel like i'm drowning in the music and it is a sweet way to go, i can tell you. There have been many psychological studies regarding drowning/near drowning and all have found that, once somebody lets go of the impulse to fight (or to survive), they are overtaken by a deep calm and sense of inner peace. 

Not unlike the music contained on these two albums, although the (almost entirely) solo 'Without Sinking' is by far the masterpiece here, the Hauschka collaboration (which, weirdly enough, is an improvisation inspired by the pantones of the ocean - more water metaphors), whilst incredibly beautiful, is slightly derailed by the percussive elements provided by Hauschka. This is in no way a negative point - just negative when compared with the solo album, which may well be my album of the year - if only i could pronounce her surname when asked for recommendation in the pub.

Wooden Wand: My week beats your year (Great Pop Supplement)

After all this electronic music that has infected me this year, i've gotten behind on listening to simple singer-songwriters and appreciating the stunning beauty that can come from a few choice words and a simple tune. Shit, I used to be a writer for fucks sake - you'd think i'd remember what a man can do with a few letters of the alphabet and some rudimentary punctuation, even without all that fancy-schmancy post production nonsense. 

The 10 tracks here are a collection of home recordings/demos from 2000-2010 and need no extra polishing, roughneck country-blues rarely sounded so bitter-sweet and so heartfelt. This music touches me in a special way and I'm really happy to reconnect with music that sounds so deceptively simple and yet is so obviously carved out of genius.

John Chantler: Automatic Music for Erik Griswold (Inventing Zero)

A true labour of love this one - ltd numbered edition of 110, signed by the artist and packaged in a lovely silk screened sleeve, the whole thing screams 'piece of art' before you even remove it from the sleeve. I bought this directly from John Chantler (one of the things i love about buying stuff online is that you can often go straight to the source, it makes the whole thing a beautifully personal experience) and am totally enchanted by the 2 sidelong pieces on offer here. The title track is a piece for modular synth whereby glassy sounds fall out of the amp like electronic rain. Behind these droplets is an occasional bass rumble that grounds it and gives the whole thing a sense of perspective. Not a lot happens, to be honest, but the repetitive simplicity is its strength here - focussing on the depth of sound rather than any notion of melody, or rhythm.

The second side is a piece for two organs, whereby the gently undulating tones flow along nicely - each one rising and falling in tone occasionally (and very subtly) to give the whole thing a sense of movement.  I wanted this to carry on for a very long time as it soothed me and made me feel secure and warm - long after the fire had gone out and before i realised that the temperature in here had actually plummeted. Central heating for the soul eh?

Imaginary Softwoods: S/T (Digitalis)

Originally released as a triple cassette in 2008, the vinyl reissue has been remastered by James Plotkin - spreading the 12 tracks over 4 sides of droning metallic near-beauty. Being that it was recorded before the last Imaginary Softwoods LP i reviewed previously, it would seem that it is a bit darker than that one. This has harsher tones and does not emanate with lushness as much as the other - but this harshness serves as a wake-up call to someone such as i, who has dined out on so much analog beauty this year. It's an occasional electronic kick up the arse for me and a reminder that John Elliott's power lies in his ability to manipulate his sounds into definitive moodscapes, not just in his ability to produce lilting beauty.

There is nothing wrong with having music challenge your preconceptions, in fact it is vital that music does this in order to side-swipe us out of mundanity and medoicrity. As each track drifts into earshot i am frequently surprised and equally frequently elated as to the pulses of sound that pour out of my speakers. 

A hugely rewarding listen that, at times, unsettles me but never ceases to en-thrall me and leaves me hungry for the whole back catalogue, in order to see where he will take me next.

C-Schulz & Hajsch: Untitled (Sonig)

Reminding me very strongly of fellow German Thomas Koner's near-perfect 'La Barca', this exercise in sound art crossed with (often) acoustic ambience is hugely effective. The field recordings of street noise, voices and the surrounding areas mix closely with the synth drones as the other instruments (guitars, melodica, accordion, harmonium, piano, clarinet, flute, horn, sax, tuba, percussion) weave in and out of the mix. Add to this the impressive array of non traditional instruments (we have three separate people playing window shades on here - as well as bricks, fire and 'concrete sounds') and the result is a spell-bindingly hypnotic mix of the familiar and the utterly unpredictable.

Other reviews have likened this to some Nurse With Wound releases but i feel that's an unfair comparison  as this album often feels far more musically constructed than the average NWW and this musicality mixing with the minutes of sounds is what gives it its dichotomous strength.

Junior Varsity KM: Fourshadowing (Darla)

Well it was 49p and it was on Darla - what could possibly go wrong? Darla, well known for their bliss-outs and shoegazey indie loveliness seem to have released this record of mixes whereby said bliss is covered with breakbeats and sounds rather horrible. Maybe i'd enjoy it better if it didn't sound so bolted together - although the B side has a much more effective percussive rhythm going down that i could probably learn to love if i played it another dozen times.

Which, to be frank, is pretty damn unlikely.

The Silent Type: Kneel (Kids)

I love a 10" record - it seems so much more interesting than a 7" and yet more mysterious than a 12". This was a Norman records cheapie that i'm glad i invested the 99p (still available at that price - if you're quick) as it is an exceptionally lovely midpaced song with hooks and chiming guitars and harmonic vocals. Sort of like how sigur ros would sound if they had more traditional vocals and allowed themselves to write (deceptively) simpler songs. Reminded me of 'Lips and fingers' by Submarine - who nobody remembers and a little bit of the fabulous album by Dart on che, who also suffer from the same forgotten fate as submarine.

RxRy: Alpha (Sweat Lodge Guru)

The mysteriously anonymous RxRy have created here the sound of techno falling apart into the dust. At times rumblingly ambient and at other times glitchy and, at the beginning of side 2, the most godawful fucking noise i've ever heard in my life - this album is certainly a journey through the graveyard of techno. There are beats dotted around the album but they rarely stay in one place (or at one rate) for long - but they do appear they pulse along in time with your heart as your brain tries hard to get to grips with what is happening musically alongside the rhythmic patterns.

A massively engaging album this, with no clear idea as to what each track will bring to the table, but one that sounds like a deconstruction of the last 20 years of electronic music - and a creative phoenix rising from the ashes of the remains.

Nils Frahm: Felt (Erased Tapes)

Recorded on microphones perilously close to strings heavily dampened by the material of the title, this makes for an incredibly intimate experience. The background noise, creakings, foot movements, breathings and the sound of the environment add acres to the already atmospheric music. This is piano playing when the piano is a living thing - the sound of life around the instrument increase the effect of the pianosaurus, whereby it is playing Nils as much as Nils is playing it (him). Allegedly recorded in the dead of night, this is music to be heard up close and personal, in order to really experience the surrounding noise as well as the musings of the pianosaurus. I feel that Nils is a tool in the process here - merely a part of the machine, and certainly not the leader in the normal sense of musician leading the system of notes and rhythm. Similar to Keith Jarrett's solo improvised work (but much more so) these tracks lead Frahm into areas he had probably rarely thought about - i believe the process created a link between pianosaurus and his thalamus and, when they were locked together, produced the wonderful (seemingly) spontaneous music heard here.

Or maybe Mr Frahm is just a beautiful, emotionally resonant, musician.

Infinite Light Ltd: S/T (Denovali)

A collaboration between Mat Sweet (Boduf songs), Aidan Baker (Nadja) and Nathan Amundson (Rivulets) which manages to mix the three people's individual styles and come up with an album that sounds all over the place, stylistically. From plaintive folky strumalongs to heavy drones, and with all manner of clankings and noises inbetween - this album is a puzzle without a solution. The three people involved have all released fine music on their own, but this is no guarantee that they should create something inspirational together - and maybe this was my problem when playing it the first few times, that the weight of expectation hyped it up to an unreachable level. 

So i took a step back and tried to listen to it as a new artist and, though difficult to separate this from what i already knew, found it easier to take and far more enjoyable. The music works best when there is a strong sense of melody as it seems to ground the musicians and stop them going off on unnecessary tangents. The beautiful last track on side one takes your breath away in its simple piano refrain tinkling away whilst rising sounds (altered voices? detuned whales?) appear in the background and fade away.....before returning again and again.

Side 2 follows a path of a similar dissociative manner with alternating aspects of light and confusion - that is always beautifully played (and fantastically produced - the guitar tones, in particular, sound amazing) and keeps you on your toes. The subtle guitar weavings of  '(More) Weather' is followed the 'orrible noise and butchered electronics of 'Down among the Mashers Part 4' - which sounds like entire repertoire of Justin Broadrick smashed to pieces, reassembled and then squeezed into 90 seconds. This is the musical equivalent of a 'BOO!' moment in a horror film. There's quite a few of those here.

And this album, like the Belong one yesterday, is playing havoc with Eric's bowels. 

Static: Freedom of Noise (Karaoke Kalk)

Hanno Leichtmann appears to be Mr Static and this album is the result of what happens when an electronic experimenter brings together a disparate group of jazz/improv musicians (playing sax, clarinet, harp, flute, trumpet, double bass, cello, piano, organ etc) and getting them to make an electro-pop album. Sounds strange? Well it is and generally works pretty well - especially in the way that the different instruments creep up on you and seep into proceedings with an almost apologetic manner. I love the fact that, on some tracks, there can be as many as nine people playing but the sound is still really understated - this is a signal that Mr Static beautifully arranged each piece so as to give each individual track room and space to float around. Very clever that - and an explanation as to why this took 5 years to record, and why it will keep the timeless quality for many years yet.

Movere Workshop: Western Hamlet (Word/Object)

Everything that PC Worship aren't, this is a lovely 20 minute 12" of well played, well recorded instrumental beauty with a lovely guitar sound and a loping nature throughout. This actually came out in 1998 and would sit well with a band like Rex, who would've been around at the same time - it was the days when the hardcore musicians realised it was no longer a crime to slow down, expand their instrumental range and actually show that they knew how to play. This was the next wave after the more abrasive slow-core bands like Slint and Codeine had shown everyone how to put the breaks on. Good times, as youngsters on Facebook seem to end their recollection of any minor fact of their lives.

PC Worship: NYC Stone Age (Shdwply)

Another child of a sale (Merci, Norman Records!), PC Worship appear to be a loose knit collective playing shittily recorded jams and improv for their own amusement and of limited appeal to others. Often messy, frequently detuned but sometimes delivering the musical pleasure pills, this is ok but not one for repeated listens. Do you remember 'Sonic Death' by Sonic Youth? Well this is a bit like that but, mercifully, half as long. Not shit but likely to be sold if ever it has any value. Which, from a record dealer point of view, is unlikely.

Kreidler: Resport remixes (Stewardness)

I actually know close to fuck all about Kreidler - this was one of those records that is a product of a Boomkat sale. Minimal techno with each track being pulled apart to the bare bones of a beat and a squelch here and there until you hit track 3 which is much more full of itself. I have no idea what the originals of these tracks (track?) sound like so have equally no idea as to whether these remixes are an improvement or not. It's fair to say though, that i liked side 1/track 3 best of the whole lot - as the hypnotic repetitions and vocal samples created an image of a Germanic voodoo ritual without the sinister connotations of such a description. Good though, and a fine return on the couple of quid it cost.

Charlatan: Triangles (Digitalis)

As if to prove that it is the antithesis of the grubby darkness of Belong, the first track here sounds positively full of light - with it's gentle swaying synth rushes, chord ascendency and laid back rhythms you feel cleansed and purified, like a sauna after a particularly heavy night. The album darkens slightly after this  opening rush, but never to an extent where it would become anything less than hugely enjoyable. Creatively sequenced, the 6 tracks on this splendid album move you through an emotional swim from the shallows through leaving the safety of your depth and going into darker, choppier waters, before finally returning to a safe beach where you can walk out and wonder whether that dark and unsettling middle bit was ever really there. I could've just written 'emotional rollercoaster' i s'pose but, fuck it, i try and avoid clichés these days.

Belong: Common Era (Kranky)

The little screech of feedback at the start of this fine, noisy blast of muddy shoegazey bliss made Eric the kitten fart, i swear. He was walking on the left speaker when the sound blasted out and there was this sudden stench - possibly the result of him eating too many spicy monster munch, but maybe a signifier of the power of Belong - that their 'Loveless' era My Bloody Valentine-isms are powerful enough to shake up a kittens bowels. Unsurprisingly really - as their melding of effects laden guitars, pounding rhythms, buried vocals, deep bass and exceedingly muddy production create a world of structured noise that you feel immersed in, maybe even occasionally suffocated in. Very enjoyable for me as it also homages a lot of the music that helped to make the early 80's such a darkly eyelinered and backcombed time for me - from The Cure to early Modern English to Play Dead and beyond. File under goth tinged and feline gut busting noisy fun. I can see the taglines on the adverts now "Belong - heavy enough to make a cat fart".

No UFO's: Mind Controls the flood (Public Information)

Very much a record of two halves this. Side one sounds like analog electronica played by the solo electro version of a garageband - whereby the music sounds unpolished and a little rough around the edges, whilst the drones that often underpin the tracks sounds pre-prepared and polished. Like a guy playing along to his droney pre-thoughts to give the whole thing a much more organic, more NOW feel. Side two feels much more worked out, with the Neu-esq opener lasting about 20 minutes too short and being followed by two slices of carefully created and extremely well produced sci-fi electro loveliness, ending in delicious ambience. There are a hell of a lot of ideas spread over these seven tracks and i think it will be really interesting to see what direction his next release will go in, keep 'em guessing.....that's the ticket.